Life's been a little crazy since I returned from Troy, AL. My dad had to have surgery and is recovering from a blister on his foot so I've been driving back and forth to his house since Friday. Everything is looking good and he's feeling better every day but your prayers are coveted and appreciated!
Our guest today is no stranger to our blog. She has shared treasures and thoughts with us, been in our spotlight and been a previous Wednesday Words with Friends guest, but before we turn the blog over to LoRee I'd like to announce July's winner of an Amazon gift card.....
Sarah Taylor!
Congratulations, Sarah....Enjoy your gift card and Thank You for supporting our guests.
Now, take it away LoRee.....
I’ve always been captivated by old barns. They catch my eye any time I’m driving through the country, the same as windmills. Rarely are they next to one another any longer. Years ago, my brother lived on an acreage that he cleaned up and flipped. The first time I drove on the place, I fell in love with the barn. I’d never been in one that could be entered on different levels. The door that faced the house opened into the loft where hay was stored. A trapdoor and ladder led to the lower level, entered from the corral, where the animals were kept.
Bingo, an old dream came to mind. One I had years before I started writing. In the dream, I walked up the stairs of an old farm house and opened a door. On the other side of the door was a farmstead of the late 1800s.
Now what did I know about that time in history other than the westerns I’d read and watched? I’d never read a time travel other than The Time Machine. Of course I’d seen the movie Back to the Future. I bought Diana Gabaldon’s tome, Outlander (and loved it except for the violence). But I was intrigued. So I started praying about a time travel story where the heroine falls through a barn trapdoor and wakes up to the cowboy of her dreams. Since my brother’s acreage was in Washington County, Nebraska, that’s where I set the story. The heroine Amanda is an event planner who lives in Omaha.
I’m excited for readers to experience a take-away escape while reading my story, one of faith and hope. Time travel is a popular genre that crosses generations of readers. This year of 2020 has put us Americans, and the world, through troubled times. There’s nothing good on the news due to the virus and politics. Beta readers and early reviewers have mentioned Cowboy Just in Time is a different kind of story, thus entertaining.
Faith always plays into my stories because my belief in God is what my life is all about. Amanda is strong in her beliefs and attends a Bible-teaching church in twenty-first century Omaha. Gavin saw God through nature but had next to no Bible teaching. Trust is a big aspect of faith. The bottom line, how could their love be strong enough to span the ages? After all, Mandy simply disappeared into thin air a couple times. But nothing is impossible with God.
My challenge for this story came while writing the historical aspect. I really didn’t have trouble identifying with the time, probably because I grew up on an outdated homesteaded farm that didn’t have plumbing until the mid-1950s. Historical references should be accurate because readers are savvy, so I may have gone a little overboard on cowboy lingo. But I also needed to research telephones in the country, the first “talkies,” and Chicago of that day.
I hope this story connects with contemporary Christian women. Readers seek to find hope from a messy world, and time travel is a genre for the curious, no matter our age. Lovers of time travel, especially romantics from late teens to mature adults who like clean happily-ever-after stories, should have the satisfaction that God is not restricted by human ideas, or our views of time.
Blurb:
When event planner Amanda Totten falls through a barn trapdoor and finds herself in the arms of an 1890’s cowboy, she scrambles to find a way back to the future. She has a life and obligations—her fledgling business and her mother’s financial needs. But the less stressful lifestyle, and her deepening love for Gavin Medley, is calling to her heart and she is torn between past and future.
Has God given her a chance at love?
Gavin Medley has been working for years to regain his family homestead. As ranch foreman, he has nothing but a dream of a place and family of his own. But his love for Amanda is making him think that having his own ranch isn’t as important as having someone to love for the rest of his life.
Amanda returns to the future, and Gavin is shattered. He tries to go forward in time, but fails. Believing it's God’s will, Gavin resigns himself to living without the love of his life.
But love transcends time, and Amanda and Gavin need each other. Can Amanda return to her cowboy?
Thank you, Pam, for hosting me today.
You're very welcome, LoRee! It is a pleasure to have you back. I LOVE old barns too so your post really rang a bell with me as I'm sure it does with more of us here. Good luck and God's blessings with Cowboy Just in Time!
Nebraska country girl LoRee Peery writes fiction that hopefully appeals to adult readers who enjoy stories written from a Christian perspective, focusing on the romance. These include novels and novellas for women and men in the Contemporary, Romance, Historical, Time Travel, and Mystery/Suspense categories. She writes of redeeming grace with a sense of place. Her Frivolities Series and the book based on her father’s unsolved homicide, Touches of Time, are available on Amazon. She is who she is by the grace of God: Christian, country girl, wife, mother, grandmother and great-, sister, friend, and author. Connect with LoRee through these links: www.loreepeery.com
Find her publications at Pelican http://tinyurl.com/kwz9enk
Hope you enjoyed today's post, friends and that you'll come back each week for Wednesday Words with Friends and Saturday Spotlight. Meanwhile, check out all of LoRee's past visits HERE.
Until next time, take care and God bless.
PamT
OH! In case you haven't noticed ... NN Light's Book Heaven is having a Binge-Worthy-Book Fest featuring 50 authors (myself included), 68 books and a HUGE giveaway! Check out my sidebar for details.
13 comments:
Congrats on the new book, LoRee. How cool to dream about opening a barn door into another time. Story ideas come to us in a lot of different ways.
Congratulations on your release LoRee! It sounds fascinating. And I don't blame Amanda for enjoying a simpler time. Makes us stop back and look at ourselves without all the distractions. But people in simpler times have the same needs we do, which is why I write--and read--historicals.
Congratulations on your book. I love old architecture including barns. D. V.🦉
Barb, you are gracious, and yes, ideas are everywhere!
Kaybee, I agree with the simplicity of earlier times. There's just romance in the West, don't you think?
D.V. I appreciate your love of old architecture.
Thank you all, and especially Pamela, for letting me share today. Blessings to you all!
I love the title! Your book sounds great!
Pamela, I'm glad your father is doing well. I'll keep him in my prayers. And, LoRee, I love the way the story idea came to you. Sounds like a great read. Congrats and best wishes!
Loved your thoughts about time travel and how God is not restricted to human ideas! Best wishes!
Thanks, Kara. Sometimes I think my titles miss the mark, but my publisher has never suggested changing any.
Alicia, if our minds are open, God can bring the creativity. Thanks for your good wishes.
Darcy, thanks for taking the time to read and comment.
I wish you all the best our Lord can bring you.
What an exciting premise for a story! Best of luck with the book!
I tend to look out for windmills.
I always enjoy time travel stories, especially with a cowboy.
Alina, I had to look at your name twice because I have a granddaughter Alaina. Thanks for liking my premise.
Hey, Mary, what's not to like about a cowboy? I hope to meet another in an upcoming Christmas novella. The idea is still percolating.
Congrats and best wishes for the success of your new novel!
Thanks so much, Jacqueline. Both time travels were fun to write.
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